economic growth this year, slower than last year. last year slower than the year before. going forward with the status quo is not going to cut it for the american people who are struggling today. >> reporter: president obama seemed at first to wander a bit, but found his footing with an answer that slammed romney as the heir of failed trickle down economics. >> i think, math, common sense, and our history shows us that is not a recipe for job growth. we tried this. the approach governor romney is talking about is the same sales pitch made in '01 and '03 and it all culminated in the worst financial crisis since the great depression. >> the president struggled to score points on what polls show is romney's biggest vulnerability. most voters believe he favors the rich. obama tried to portray the romney/ryan plan for medicare in that light. >> when you move to a voucher system you are putting seniors at the mercy of the insurance companies and over time if traditional medicare has decayed or fallen apart then they're stuck. >> romney zeroed in on obama's vulnerability unpopul